my fav.....forgiveness

That day, my nephew was writing his first ‘Eid Greeting card to give to his kindergarten teacher. He looked so cute while lying on his tummy, with a pen in his hand, writing and spelling the words out loud at the same time.Then, I asked him- ‘Have you said sorry to your teacher for all the cheeky things you did in school this year?’‘No… do I have to?’ he got curious‘Of course my dear! Now write in the card that you ask her to forgive you… and don’t forget to thank her for teaching you until you become so clever’ I said with a smile‘Ok!’ he answered cheerfully and began writing.As I looked at him writing, I asked myself this very same question- have I said sorry and seek for forgiveness from the One who has not only made me ‘so clever’, but in actually fact, He has given me every single thing that I have on me right now?

This pair of shiny eyes that allows me to see, the every single strand of hair on my head, the teeth that graces my smiles, each drop of tears that make my eyes moist, each one of the heart beats I have, all the muscle that allows me to move so easily, the skin the wrapped all the flesh, blood and muscle of my physical and the brain that is a miracle on its own, mashaAllaah.

He, the Al Mighty has given me all these to say the very least, but what have I done?I became cheeky, sometimes very cheeky; I became stubborn, sometimes very stubborn; I wasn’t grateful, sometimes very ungrateful; I disobeyed Him, sometimes disregard His instructions; didn’t defend Him, feel shy to do what He asked me to do and prefer to follow what others aka His Creations wants me to do; and so many more things I couldn’t even write here.

Really, don’t I know that I, of all people, should be the first to seek for His Forgiveness for my acts in His World?And despite all that, despite whatever that I did, or maybe what I have not done, He, my Lord, my Creator, my Perfect Planner has mentioned this to His Messenger, Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him),"O Son (& daughter) of Adam, as long as you supplicate to Me and have hope in me I will pardon you in spite of what you have done, and I do not care. O Son (& daughter) of Adam, if your sins were so numerous as to reach the lofty regions of the sky, then you asked My forgiveness, I would forgive you, and I do not care. O Son (& daughter) of Adam, if you were to meet Me with enough sins to fill the earth, then met Me, not associating anything with Me (in worship), I shall greet you with its equivalent in forgiveness.'" (Narrated by Al-Tirmidhi. And Ahmad and Al-Darimi transmitted it from Abu Dharr)Ya Allaah, Al-Ghaffaar (The Most Forgiving)…I felt tears coming down my cheek the moment I read the words I do not care, I do not care, I do not care…Ya Allaah, how Most Merciful, Most Loving, Most Kind are you…

and how wrong I have been to not even bother to ask for Your Forgiveness when You do not even care how much wrongs I have done….I remembered what he (pbuh) taught his beautiful wife, Lady Aishah (ra),Aisha radhiyallahi anha narrated that she asked Rasulullah salallahu alayhi wasalam, ‘If I happen to find the night of power, what should I say in du’a?’ He replied, ‘Say: O Allah! You are the Most Forgiving, the Most Generous, You love to forgive, so please forgive me.’ (Muslim)Tonight, I know that during the Qiyam al-Layl in the Blessed month of Ramadan with just 5 more days to go, I only want to ask for one thing from Him.

And even if I asked from Him just this one thing, I know deep in my heart that this one thing is everything to me… and that thing is His Forgiveness…

Wouldn’t you want to ask the same too?

HOPE

I was watching a documentary yesterday. It was about a man, who had lived his life simply by hanging on to a hope he had deep in his heart, a hope that one day, a cure to his illness could be found. SubhanAllah, he taught me an important lesson yesterday.

The lesson of HOPE I realized from him, that hope is such a powerful feeling that Allah has given to us, His Servant.Could you imagine a life without hope? What would life be if the feeling of hope is absent from our heart? Imagine, an ill person, a sinful person, a sad person, a heart-broken person, a financially distressed person, an emotionally distressed person, a grieving person and many more who decided that there is no hope for them? What would happen to them? Nauzubillaah…
Because of that, Allah given us this important feeling of hope, don’t you think?Feeling of believing that there is a better future for us, feeling that things are going improve for the better, believe that the darkest moment is just before the crack of dawn…

He, the Al Mighty has instructed us with this instruction,
Call out to Him with fear and hope. (Surat al-Araaf 7:56)
He said call out to Him, pray to Him, ask from Him.

I remembered once, I was asked by a friend. Would Allah forgive him for all that he had done in his life? he said that there are too many sins he is ashamed off, to many rules he had broken, too many whispers of devil that he followed…whose that huh?

As I held his hands, I told him about this beautiful hadith from our beloved Prophet (may Allah; peace and blessings be upon him),“Allah the Almighty has said: 'O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me, and hope in Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds in the sky and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I shall forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with an earthful of sins and were you then to face Me, without having associated anything with Me, I shall grant you an earthful of pardon.'" [Recorded by Al-Tirmidhi, who said that it is a good and sound hadith, Subhanallah

Tantrumtots:

Isnt that hadith just like water that is much needed in the desert we are all living in? Isnt that what we are hoping from Allaah, our Lord, our Creator? His Love, His Mercy and His Forgiveness?

THE UNITED STATES by DR M

1. I wonder what is happening to the United States of America. It used to lay down the laws and rules which the whole world must abide. If any country refuses then blacklisting, sanctions and even invasions by the US forces might ensue.

2. It set the forms and standards for everything; systems of Government, human rights, economic transparency etc etc. Now it seems to be breaking or ignoring its own rules, regulations and laws.

3. It had condemned the Internal Security Act as unjust and a violation of human rights. Following the shock and awe invasion of Iraq, it has detained alleged terrorists without trial and without rights and habeas corpus proceeings. Some detainees have been there for five years.

4. Then in Abu Ghraib detention camp detainees have been tortured and humiliated. They were treated like animals. If it had happened in some weak Asian country, the US would demand for all kinds of punishment which the US is ever ready to inflict. But no one can drag Americans to court and punish them. If at all American courts would try these miscreants and the punishment would be very light.

5. Because of the extraordinary greed of American financiers and businessmen, they invent all kinds of ways to make huge sums of money. We cannot forget how in 1997-98 American hedge funds destroyed the economies of poor countries by manipulating their national currencies.

6. When as a result of the so-called trade in currencies the companies in the poor countries faced bankruptcy, the Governments were told not to bail out any company or bank which was in deep trouble. The Americans claimed that these companies or banks were inefficient and they should be allowed to go bankrupt and perish. Better still they should be sold at fire-sale price to American investors.

7. Yet today we see the US Government readying US700 billion to brazenly bail out banks, mortgage companies and insurance companies.

8. Where does the money come from? From thin air as no real money in cash or bullion or anything tangible are moved into the bankrupt banks. The money is just in the form of loan papers and entries in the books of the banks or companies.

9. The US 700 billion has no backing whatsoever. No gold reserves, no foreign currency reserves as required for other countries. Without such backing the US Dollar is actually useless. Only the military power of the US is forcing the world to give value to the US Dollar.

10. Desperate to avoid a serious recession the US has abandoned all its principles. It has now banned short selling, limited currency trading and insist that the accounts of hedge funds and currency traders to be open for inspection and be published.

11. In the final spasm of fear, the Government has given itself the right to resolve the problem of bankrupt banks and companies by the Government taking over i.e. the great capitalist country has accepted what is nothing more than nationalisation which it had condemned so much before.

12. The US now owes the world US 14 trillion. There is no way it can ever settle this debt. If other countries fail to repay or service their debts, the US would demand that they be made bankrupt. Now the US is literally bankrupt but it still insists that the pieces of paper, the famous or infamous greenbacks have some value. It actually has no value. Certainly it cannot be used to finance wars of aggression against Iraq and Afghanistan, to finance the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) activities in undermining Governments and countries. But still the US' ability to threaten countries is undiminished.

13. An attempt is being made even in Malaysia to achieve a regime change. Money has been funnelled to certain individuals and parties to ensure that a well-known candidate with extensive connection to the US Jewish lobby would somehow become the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

14. US intervention in the politics of Malaysia is clear. I may not agree with the leadership of the present Government but I resent and object to US manipulations to make a satellite of this nation.

Tantrumtots:

speechless !!!!

Plato on love and marriage

One day, Plato asked his teacher, “What is love? How can I find it?”The teacher answered, “There’s a large wheat field in front. Walk there without turning back, and take just one leaf. If you can find one leaf that you think is extraordinary, it means you have found love.”
So Plato walked…and not long after that, he came back empty-handed.
The teacher asked him, “Why, you don’t bring any leaf?”
Plato said, “I can only bring just one leaf and when I walked through the wheat field I can’t turn my back. Actually I have found one extraordinary leaf, but I don’t know whether there’s any other leaf more extraordinary, so I didn’t take that leaf. When I walked further, I realized that the leaves I found are not as extraordinary compared to the leaf I’ve found earlier in my walk. In the end, I didn’t take any single leaf.”
Then the teacher told him, “So…that is love.”
Another day, Plato asked his teacher again, “What is marriage? How can I find it?”
The teacher answered, “There is a forest in front. Please walk there and don’t look back. You can only cut one tree, and cut the one that you think is the highest. That is when you find marriage.”
Plato walks there, and he came back not long after bringing one tree. The tree, however, is not a very good tree and not a very tall one, either. It’s just an ordinary tree.
The teacher asked him, “Why did you cut that kind of tree?”
Plato answered, “Because from my previous experience, after walking through the wheat field, I came back with nothing. So this time, when I saw this tree which I think is not so bad, I decided to cut it and bring it here. I don’t want to lose another chance to get it.” And the teacher said, “Well .. that is marriage.”

Tantrum Tots:
The more you look for love, you will find nothing. Love is in your heart, when you can control your desire and your hope to find something better. When you have endless hope and wish of love, you will only get emptiness…because you won’t get anything and time can not be turned back. Accept love for what it is.
Marriage is a continuation of love. It’s a process of having chances, and you choose the best option among all the alternatives. If you want to have a perfect match and a perfect marriage, you will only waste your time, because there is no perfect marriage.

A story of A daughter and A mother

My mother and I hardly agree on anything. In fact, we disagree on almost everything. For as long as I can remember, my mother and I have been like the opposite poles of a magnet. North Pole and South Pole. Hot and cold. Mountain and valley. High and low. Night and day. Black and white.
I did not understand the reason why we resisted each other until I attended a workshop on communication behaviours and styles recently. I now understand the way we interact with each other is just a product of our communication behaviour. There are four communication quadrants that determine our communication behaviour and styles. Some people are controllers, some are analysers, some are promoters and some are supporters. I now recognise it is just a different way of communicating.
Being in quadrant neither makes one right nor wrong and neither makes neither one a good nor a bad person. Each of us all is different, just like the weather. As English writer, John Ruskin puts it, “Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating. There is no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.”
On that note, someone old and wise told me once, that the day I forgive my mother is the day I grow up. It has taken me so long to come to THAT day but thanks to this workshop, I am glad I arrived before it is too late. I want to acknowledge my mother by writing about her for the whole world to know, while she is still living to read what I wrote about her. I do not want to miss this train.
My mother and I may have many disagreements between us. Despite all that melodramas, I still think of my mother as the best mother in the world. My mother calls me her favourite daughter. It is very gratifying to know that, regardless of knowing that I am, in fact, her only daughter. Even so, I will return the flattering compliment with equal devotion. She is my favourite mother, even though I know she is the only mother I have.
What I remember most about my mother is her hands.
My mother’s hands are not the most beautiful hands I have seen – they are short, thick, meaty and square. Nevertheless, I know those hands are the pillars that nurtured and strengthened me. These are the hands that rock the cradle. These are the hands that made my life beautiful.
These are the hands that cooked my favourite dishes. These are the hands that pat me on the back when I was being a good girl. These are the hands that spanked me when I misbehaved. These are the hands that assuaged my fears when I was afraid. These are the hands that held me tenderly and protected me from harm. These are the hands that wiped my tears when I broke down and cry. These are the hands that assured me when I felt vulnerable.
I know that I was always in the best care when in my mother’s hands.
The more I think about my mother’s hands, the more my love grows for my mother. Through those hands, I understand humanity – of love, of care, of responsibility and of accountability. Those are the hands that taught me the meaning of sacrifice and compassion. Those are the hands that showed me how to be charitable to those in need. Those are the hands that inspired me to make a difference in the lives of others.
These are the hands that made me what I am today. These are the hands that moulded me into a good girl and steered my journey in becoming a great woman.
When I held my mother’s hand yesterday before I kissed her good night, I suddenly remembered these beautiful song lyrics by Debi Smith from the “Four Bitchin’ Babes” album:
When I saw my mother’s hand,
I have my mother’s hands
And I have my mother’s voice
And I have my mother’s eyes,
Though I have a daughter’s choice
I thought I carved my own life
In unknown, uncharted lands
I never thought I’d look down and see my mother’s hands. I wanted to be my own self I thought I knew it all
I’d stomp and buck and whinny, like a young colt in a stall
And I bet I was a handful, thought I didn’t understand
I was always in the best care when in my mother’s hands The other night I lay dreaming that my mother held my face
She kissed me on the forehead
And then she took her place
Among the mothers and the daughters
In the ever-changing sands
One by one their time had come when they’d soon understand
They all had their mothers’ hands
Yes, I realised now that I too, have my mother’s hands. My own hands remind me of my mother’s hand. When I look at my own hands, I see the same short, thick, meaty and square shape. I used to hate the shape of my hands because I had wished for long and slender hands. Now I have come to love my hands now because they look like my mother’s hands, and I now understand what my mother’s hands mean to me.
As I look at my own hands, I learned by heart the contours of my mother’s hands. As I my hands touched my heart, as my mother has touched my heart, I know I am my mother’s favourite daughter, as much as my mother knows that she is my favourite mother.
I never thought I would look down and see my mother’s hands – and my mother’s strength, dexterity, and resourcefulness – in my hands. I made a promise to my mother that I will use the power of my hands as well as she used hers. With my hands, I will carry the torch of my mother’s love, compassion, passion and dreams.
From her heart, through her hands, she shares her love. And with my heart, through my hands, I share my love.

Tantrumtots:
Rabbighfir lii wa liwaalidayya wa lilmu"miniina yauma yaquumul'hisaab, Rabbirhamhumaa kamaa rabbayaanii shaghiiraa
O Lord, forgive me, my parents and Muslims in the Hereafter. O Lord, show mercy on them as they have nourished me when I was young

I love my mummy so much and mothers r a massive blessing and a special gift from Allah, May Allah cause us to love our parents, respect them and honour them. Ameen